I gave her, on parting 24 sous. She burst into tears of a gratitude which I could perceive was unfeigned, because she was unable to utter a word.
I find it uplifting to see Thomas Jefferson hear this woman out on her problem and help her. It wasn't a permanent solution, but it was still a heavily appreciated by the woman.
I am conscious that an equal division of property is impracticable. But the consequences of this enormous inequality producing so much misery to the bulk of mankind
I find this interesting, because Jefferson is saying that dividing the property equally between everyone wouldn't work. He also is saying that there is a lot of misery being brought to the people because of this inequality. He knows that there is an issue here, but there is no clear solution.